By Clyde Mooney
Two Sydney pubs have gone on the market, and industry insiders are predicting more will follow now that pub owners have a degree of certainty on poker machine reforms.
Pub owners around the country are breathing easier following the announcement that the mandatory pre-commitment proposal will be limited to a trial in the ACT.
Riversdale CEO Patrick 'Paddy' Coughlan told TheShout this will allow stakeholders to relax a little and list distressed venues.
"I think we will probably see more distressed pubs come onto the market, as owners and financial controllers become more confident," he said.
As signalled by TheShout last year, Rozelle's Welcome Hotel and Glebe's Australian Youth Hotel (pictured) have formally come up for sale, following owner Damien Silk's slide into receivership in December.
The venues will be sold by auction in March, the campaign being run by Joel Fisher and Daniel Dragicevich of CBRE, with Gerry Quinlan and John Manenti of Manenti Quinlan.
Fisher told TheShout these venues will attract stronger interest than some of the other inner-Sydney venues recently up for grabs.
"The key difference with these assets is that they are really high quality – they perform well and present well, with stable incomes and a non-reliance on gaming," he said.
"The Welcome is a very well-known food pub, recently awarded 2 Schooners in the Good Pub food guide."
"Both it and the Australian Youth have already attracted good interest from national food-based hoteliers."